Korean peninsula's effigy war

Tuesday, April 24, 2012 - 01:43

April 24 - Effigies of North and South Korea's respective leaders bear the brunt of escalating tensions. Paul Chapman reports.

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PLEASE NOTE: EDIT CONTAINS CONVERTED 4:3 MATERIAL
Another effigy of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak is put through the mill in North Korea.
It's one of various anti-Lee demonstrations aired by North Korean state broadcaster KRT on Monday.
This one was in Gangwon Province.
Another on the streets of Pyongyang showed students chanting 'let's kill' and venting their spleen on another effigy.
In the South a smaller group of anti-Pyongyang protesters took out their anger on an effigy of North Korea's new leader Kim Jong-un.
The wave of protests come in the midst of threats from the North to turn the South Korean capital to ashes.
There's also the prospect of another North Korean nuclear test.
A senior source with close ties to Pyongyang and Beijing told Reuters the North has almost completed preparations.
The source didn't say if the test would be the third using plutonium or whether uranium would be used this time.
South Korea's foreign ministry says they're monitoring developments closely.
SOUNDBITE: SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN CHO BYUNG-JAE SAYING (Korean):
"Up to now any extraordinary developments regarding the nuclear test, like signs showing the test is imminent, haven't been confirmed yet."
The prospect of a North Korean nuclear test follows a controversial rocket launch earlier in April which ended in failure.
Paul Chapman, Reuters

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